


Idol Project: A Miraculous Ladybug - The Tales of Ladybug and Chat Noir FanFiction

by Lacey_Cheshire_Grin



Series: Idol Project: A Miraculous Ladybug - The Tales of Ladybug and Chat Noir FanFiction [1]
Category: Miraculous Ladybug
Genre: Cute, F/M, Fluff, Miraculous Ladybug Love Square, This show is so adorable and pure, Validation, appreciation, cleanse my sins, school work can be fun sometimes, slight angst
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-06-13
Updated: 2017-06-26
Packaged: 2018-11-13 12:44:35
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 6
Words: 8,641
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/11185395
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Lacey_Cheshire_Grin/pseuds/Lacey_Cheshire_Grin
Summary: School projects can be fun sometimes, especially if you're secretly a superhero.





	1. Part 1

Idol Project  
A Miraculous Ladybug - The Tales of Ladybug and Chat Noir FanFiction

Even as Ladybug and Chat Noir had been busy all week with akuma villain this and HawkMoth minion that, their alter egos Marinette and Adrien still had other obligations. Mainly, school.

“Plagg, just take your camembert and hide okay? I can't have you making noise in class today, we're getting assigned a new project..." Adrien handed his little kwami a tin of Camembert cheese before stuffing them both into his messenger bag. Even after a long night of heroics and cat puns, the young model walked into the classroom bright-eyed as ever.

"It's not like the project's due today, but whatever you say." He took the cheese happily and stowed away as his current human walked into class and took his seat next to Nino. The two of them exchanged little specialized handshakes the aspiring dj had taught his friend to help him “up his cool factor” as he had put it. The handshake was still a bit of a blunder, but the two of them laughed it off. Adrien was still learning.

In front of them, Alya drummed her fingers on the desk, head laying heavy in her other hand as she watched the door to the classroom. "Looks like she is late again. If her head weren’t attached to her body, she'd never remember to bring it with her! And I had some new shots on my Lady-Blog I wanted to show her too...” Class started to proceed as usual, the teacher doing a small introduction on their newest project assignment. Soon enough though there was the sound of hurried footsteps approaching from the hall.

"Sorry I’m late!" Marinette burst through the doors almost comically and made a b-line to her seat, sliding into at such a high speed that she practically body slammed into Alya’s side.

"Woah! Slow down, girl!" Alya advice came too late as she was helping her friend upright into her seat, half giggling and half teasing with only somewhat real “ows.”

“Marinette Dupain-Cheng!” The sternness in their teacher Ms. Bustier’s voice was harsher than usual, catching the attention of all the students. “That's four cases of tardiness in a row this week! I’m afraid I will have to give you detention for this.” Marinette sunk into her seat with guilt and disappointment painted over her face, the other students murmuring slightly at what transpired.

“Seriously girl, what have you been doing…?” Alya leaned over as her friend sank lower and lower out of sight. Of course, Marinette couldn’t explain that all the criminals she had been fighting this week was taking its toll, like always.

Before her tongue to even stumble out a half baked answer, the class diva Chloe jumped in; always looking for a opportunity to be snide. "Being a complete dunce of course, as Marinette does! Serves her right, too. If you can't be on time, why even come at all?" Her lackey Sabrina promptly agreed with a fast nod of the head.

"C'mon, Teach, she wasn't that late this time," Nino tried to help plead her case like always, along with a few others.

Adrien chipped in as well, "Yeah, she was only late by a couple of minutes. I think detention is a little much…"

"You have no ground to be defending her, Adrien Agreste. You too have some outstanding tardies that should be dealt with." Ms. Bustier crossed her arms, looking down her nose at the lot of them. "But we'll discuss those at a later time. Right now, I have to assign you all the next project. This time, the project will be to research and present some of France's greatest models and heroes. But because I know everyone here will pick Ladybug and Chat Noir, I'll be assigning who does what icon." There was a mass groan of derision, which the teacher silenced with a glare.

She went through the list of students, "And finally, Marinette you will be studying Chat Noir and Adrien you will be presenting Ladybug.." Though most of the class was either happy or neutral on who they were assigned, there was a slight envious tone when the best projects were given away to the last two students. Chloe was especially livid about this, stewing away in her desk seat. "Now, even though you all have your own projects, if you find that your person has something to do with another, like Ladybug and Chat Noir being a heroic duo, you may assist each other in some of the research. **But,** you will present alone with the majority of the research presented being from your own findings, no exceptions."

 _“Chat Noir? This’ll be a piece of cake, I already know so much about that stray cat…”_ Marinette thought of all the information she could already use in the upcoming presentation, grinning a bit. _“Adrien has me, I mean Ladybug, as his project too! I hope he thinks I – she, is cool… I need to be Ladybug for Adrien but I also need to go talk to Cat Noir... Looks like I have a lot to do this afternoon, but I can make it work! I’m no class rep and the hero of Paris for nothing!"_ She gave herself an inner pep talk with an obviously ambitious expression glowing through. Tikki gave Marinette a smile and a little thumbs up from her coin purse as encouragement, as if she knew what her holder was thinking.

 _“Oh wow, I got Ladybug?! This is great, I know all about her... I think... mostly.”_ Adrien himself thought of his assignment with a smile on his face that he couldn't really hide. He was actually excited about the project until it dawned on him that Marinette had to study Chat Noir. He needed a way for her to do her work without figuring out Chat’s identity. "Hey, Alya, you run that Ladybug blog, right?" Adrien turned around, looking at the two girls seated behind him. "Do you think I could use it as part of my research?" He thought that he had to at least look like he was going to do work on the project as a normal, know-nothing-suspicious student.

“Yeah, go ahead, it’s up for public use! But I’ll tell you a little secret. If you want a special interview with Ladybug _**in person,**_ you should talk to Marinette! She’s the one that got me my own interview with Ladybug not too long ago. They’re total buds.” Alya nudged Marinette’s arm a bit, with a wink. “Right?”

"Really?" His bright green eyes lit up at this news. "That'd be great, if you could!”

“Y-Yeah! I'd do anything for you - I mean, I can get that internet for you – interview! I mean interview, yeah.." Marinette rubbed the back of her neck nervously and gave a dorky grin.

"That sounds amazing, tha-"

He was cut off by the sound of Chloe's shrill laughter, "Marinette, you must have gotten lying lessons from Lila, because I almost believed that a nobody like you actually knew Ladybug..." Lila, sitting towards the back, heard the cutting remark and sunk back into her seat, away from view. "Adri-Kins! Why don't you let me help you instead, Ladybug and I are like total bffs, I mean I am her biggest fan and all." The blonde batted her lashes with lips pursed into a smile.

Marinette growled and glared at Chloe. Her patience with the Little Miss Mayor’s Girl was wearing very thin as of late. "I do know Ladybug! And I can prove it too! So why don’t you go put your nose into the business of someone who actually cares!?" The force and volume of her retort stunned the room. Even Chloe backed off to her own desk with a stubborn but defeated little huff.

"Whoa, pull it back in Marinette, she's not worth it..." Adrien winced a bit, happy that her comment shut Chloe up a bit but surprised she could be that open. And loud. The teacher scolded the two girls and the rest of the class remained pretty quiet after that, but Adrien did give her a thankful smile when the teacher wasn't looking.

Catching the smile, Marinette blushed and turned away with a smile of her own. _"A-Adrien! He… smiled at me!"_ She thought. _"Sure I was kind of mean to Chloe, but she had it a long time coming. The more important part was Adrien noticed me!"_ She giggled stupidly, albeit quietly, and smiled brighter than ever.

Soon the class was over and let out the students. There was already chatter about people helping each other with research, and gossipy reactions to the most recent Chloe/Marinette encounter. Not that she noticed, still over the moon about the project and her current standing with her crush.

"So Marinette, when can you get in contact with Ladybug?" Adrien walked out with her, Nino tagging along behind them with Alya. The two of them whispered to the other as they watched their friends interact, coy smiles abound.

"Oh uh... I'll call her! Um right now!" Marinette quickly pulled out her phone, dialing an imaginary number that lead to nowhere and pretended to chat with Ladybug. After a few minutes passed, she stuffed her cell back into her pocket with a big dorky smile. "Ladybug said she would be happy to meet you! She’ll see you by the Eiffel Tower in about 10 minutes! B-But I can’t come with, I have to help my dad in the bakery today! So I will uh... Just get going! Bye!" She waved and hastily made her escape.

"Uh, ok...? Thank you so much Marinette, I'll make it up to you later!" He called out as she ran off, grinning wide and a bit stupidly; he was about to meet Ladybug as himself in a real interview! Sure he had met her a few times before, but this was legitimate. Not a rescue or a chance crossing of paths, a real meeting. He waved goodbye to Alya and Nino as he hurried to the famous monument.

Meanwhile, Marinette had left the school building completely, hiding behind another nearby structure. "Tikki, we have to meet with Adrien in ten minutes! Spots On!"

“You got it, Marinette! Let's just hope that no bad guys come out while you're talking with him.” The little kwami flew from her nest of a coin purse and after expressing a bit of concern zoomed into one of the miraculous earrings. Out of a flurry of magic, Marinette was replaced with Ladybug, soon swinging on the end of her yo-yo towards the Eiffel Tower, giggling like a child on their birthday.


	2. Part 2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> School projects can be fun sometimes, especially if you're secretly a superhero.

With barely a minute to spare, Adrien made it to the bottom of the tower. Trying to catch his breath a bit, he shielded his eyes from the sun as he worked to spot Ladybug. "Maybe Marinette meant that I was supposed to meet Ladybug at the top…?

"Remember lover boy, this is an interview, and not a date." Plagg teased from the messenger bag, still licking his little stubby paws from his earlier camembert treat. "Although maybe you could ask her on one later on?"

As soon as the model hushed his companion, Ladybug swooped down right in front of him. "Whew! Sorry about the wait, Adrien!" Ladybug exclaimed as she hopped down in front of him after flying through the city to get there. "Sooo... Marinette told me you wanted an interview, right?" A light blush tinted her cheeks, partially obscured by her facemask. "Well uh, what did you want to talk about…?"

"Oh wow! Ladybug!" He felt a certain level of awe when she was addressed him by his actual name. "U-Uh, yeah! We're doing school projects on famous French figures, and I'm writing a report on you." He was already gripping a note book and pen in his hands, "If you don't mind, I want to talk about what it's like to be a superhero and everything."

"Well, it’s definitely a full time job," she put her hands together and thought for a moment, trying to articulate her words better. “Seems like something new happens everyday. And under this mask, I’m still just a regular girl, so balancing everything in my normal life and this life can be hard… But its worth it knowing I can help people! I love being able to save people and make them happy, it’s really satisfying knowing I’m making a difference in someone’s life."

Adrien scribbled down all that she talked about, glancing between her and his pages. "Speaking of which, and you don't have to answer of course but I have to ask; this girl I know, Alya, mentioned on her Lady-Blog a while back that you might go to our school, and you know Marinette and all so, I was wondering if that was true...? If you got to our school…? I won't write it in my report though, I promise! I know how you are with keeping your identity a secret, I’m just curious..."

“O-Oh, um…” Marinette was in turmoil with herself over the question. She wanted to truthfully answer Adrien but she also didn’t want to be found out. She could just head Tikki in her head, _“If you can't even bring yourself to tell your own partner Chat Noir who you are without the Miraculous, then you shouldn't tell it to Adrien..."_ Finally making up her mind, she sighed as she shook her head, giving her interviewer an apologetic smile. “I’m sorry Adrien. I’d like to tell you if I do or not, but I can’t risk my identity getting out. The people close to me could get hurt because of it.”

"Hey, it's okay Ladybug, really..." He laid a gentle hand on her shoulder with an understanding smile. When she put it that way, his Chat Noir side had to agree with her, even if he still wanted to know. "Let's get back to the official interview then, huh? Can you tell me how you found your kwami and became the Miraculous Ladybug that we all know?"

“… How do you know the miraculous spirit is called a kwami…?” Her eyebrow raised, suspicious of something but not sure of what.

"Oh! I-I heard that's what the things that help you shift are. Actually I saw it in a history book..."

"Nice save, smooth talker…" Plagg chuckled to himself from within his bag.

“I didn’t think they wrote about kwamis in any normal history book."

"I'm just a big fan of you and Chat Noir..." He tried to laugh it off. "But anyway, how did you meet yours?"

"Hmm… Well, I was just a normal girl, pretty klutzy and not all that confident in myself. It was my first day of high school, and I was having a worse day than usual. But I kept my head up and I did my best to help everyone who was also down in the dumps. I think Tikki, my kwami, liked that about me. I found my miraculous jewel and Tikki on my desk at home later out of nowhere, and now everyone knows me as Ladybug. At first I was really afraid that I wasn’t up to the job, but with Chat Noir's help, I learned to believe in myself more and that we were chosen by our kwamis for a reason."

He transcribed every word, smiling as he did. "Is Chat Noir a good partner, would you say?" He had always been a bit curious about what she would say, without Chat Noir or any official paparazzi there.

"Oh yeah! He’s a wonderful partner! He’s clever and strong and always there for me when I need him. Sure, he may annoy me when he clowns around too much during a serious situation, but I’ll admit it can be endearing at times…”

Adrien was ecstatic on the inside, trying to hide it as she didn't know she was really talking about him. "Maybe he's just 'clawing' to get your attention..." He chuckled before realizing his slip up, "Is what he would say, I guess. I-If he were here…"

"Yeah. That ** _is_** something he'd say..." Ladybug crossed her arms with a cocked eyebrow and again began to wonder. Chat Noir was too annoying to be Adrien. Then again, Marinette was more confident as Ladybug. Perhaps - if and only if - Adrien _**was**_ Chat Noir, he was more outgoing and silly. They both had similar voices, similar hair. Similar smiles. "You must be a **_really_** big fan huh?"

"Heh, guilty..." He scratched the back of his head with a light smile. Inside he was thankful she didn't see through the joke. "Anyway, I-I got to go, if I'm late to another photo shoot, my father's going to kill me. Thank you so much for the interview, and thank Marinette for me too!" He called and waved as he ran off, clutching the notebook.

“N-No problem! Anytime!” Ladybug waved him off. “There’s no way that he and Chat Noir could be the same person…” Soon enough she was swinging away, taking the long way to her home in order to hide her transformation back to her old self.

Tikki, once released, hovered over Marinette’s shoulder with a telling look on her face. "Well, Chat Noir might be from you class, Adrien or not. But either way, you should get home and start on your own project Marinette."

"You're right, Tikki. I don't have time to think about that. I need to finish my presentation!" Marinette quickly headed home.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The 1st chapter has been up for a little less than 24 hours and it's already got like 8 kudos and 140+ hits, like holy shit. Thanks guys, hopefully you like the rest that's to come


	3. Part 3

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> School projects can be fun sometimes, especially if you're secretly a superhero.

"So, what are you actually going to write about on Chat Noir?" Tikki floated around Marinette as she worked at her desk.

"I’m sure I know him well enough. I should be able to think of something decent to write..." Marinette sat down, hunched over her desk with one chin holding her head and the other wagging a pen over a piece of paper. "I mean I don’t have to interview him, do I?"

"It may seem strange not to interview him, given that you don’t **_know_** him as Marinette, but I guess it wouldn't really matter." The little kwami shrugged picking up a cookie from the platter by Marinette's side.

“But he can just be so annoying at times. Especially those times I’ve run into him out of my Ladybug…”

“It would be more professional, but it is your project. Do what you think is best.”

Thought exhausted, and no excited about it, she sighed and gave a nod. “No, no, you’re right. I need to make it look official, so nothing seems suspicious...” Lifting herself up from her work desk, Marinette went about gathering her notebook and pen, and her little coin purse for Tikki of course.

At the same time, by coincidence, Adrien and his little kwami were having a similar conversation. "Hey Adrien, since Marinette set up that meeting with LadyBug with you, maybe Chat Noir should return the favor?" Plagg munched on some camembert, floating around Adrien as he worked on his project.

"That's not a bad idea, I'm sure she'd appreciate it..." He nodded, giving his kwami a bit of a side look, "You usually don't care about stuff like this though, why so thoughtful all of a sudden?"

"Does it matter why, it's still a good idea." He chuckled, mouth full.

"Yeah well, ok you're right. Let's go, Plagg Transform!" Adrien turned into Chat Noir in a flash and started on his way to his friend's house.

Dodging the dim streetlamps flickering to life and the occasional pedestrian, he scaled the side of the Dupain-Cheng bakery up to the terrace above Marinette’s room. Though he found the floor hatch down to her room unlocked, he still knocked on it with a singsong call.

She let out a surprised little ‘Eep!’ not expecting to hear Chat Noir at her home. She hesitantly went to the hatch that opened up to the balcony above her, still unsure whether she heard right. Peeking up through a cracked door she saw bright emerald slits close up, staring back with a mischievous glimmer.

“Hey there purr-incess,” A smirk appeared on his lips to match.

“Chat Noir!?” Marinette blinked, “What on earth are you doing here? Are you psychic…?”

“Psychic? I don’t know about that, but I did hear from a little friend that you’re doing a school project on me,” He smirked as his chin rested on his crossed arms, laid out in from of the door. “Mind if I come in, perhaps for a bowl of milk?”

“Really? From who?” She swung the hatch door open all the way and moved so he could slip down into her room. She rolled her eyes at the mention of the bowl of milk, with an amused smirk.

“Oh, just a certain blond, friend… of yours…” His voice trailed off as he spotted the multiple prints of himself – or rather, Adrien Agreste – hung about the walls bordering her desk. He gave an awkward clearing of the throat. “That friend, actually…”

She was confused until she realized she still had the pictures of her school crush up. “O-Oh, Adrien? You know him, w-what a small world, huh? Uh, oh, those picture, t-there for… anatomy! I use them for anatomy references w-when I sketch fashion designs…”

“Oh… Well, anyway…” Even in his alter ego he was quite oblivious. “He told me that you had done him a favor, getting him an interview with Ladybug, and he wanted to return the favor. You are doing a report on me, aren’t you purr-incess?” Leaning against his staff he flashed his signature smirk.

“A-Adrian..?!" She asked, a blush creeping along her cheeks. "You know each other..?"

"Yeah, Ladybug and I have saved both of you more than a couple times," He laughed a bit, "But anyway, ask me anything you'd like. I'm at your service…" He did his usual low and melodramatic bow.

She had already been getting her things to go interview him out on her desk, this would certainly be better then wondering around Paris at near dusk. With a small smile and a lightly entertained laugh, she offered him a seat as she flipped to a fresh page in her notebook, “Ready?”

“Paws-itively,” He purred.

“What’s it like having to save Paris almost everyday?”

“Luckily it’s not everyday; I don’t think even My Lady would be able to keep up at that pace, let alone me,” he joked, shrugging his shoulders. “But honestly, it feels great to be able to do something that makes a difference in peoples lives, actually stand for something, and get looked up to for my actions and not something superficial like my looks or anything like that, like in my normal life.” He could almost hear his kwami snickering at him for that last bit.

“I can imagine,” She smiled, noting his answer down, “So you’re a pretty normal kid outside of the suit? How’d you come across your powers then?”

“Eh, normal isn’t, exactly the word for it…” An awkward chuckle escaped his lips as he rubbed the back of his neck. “But anyway, I honestly just came home from a really bad day of school and this was just sitting there on my desk in a really ornate box…” Chat Noir flashed his ring, the jeweled paw glinted in the light. “The little spirit is a little black cat named Plagg, he’s called a kwami actually. And then I met My Lady, and the rest is history.” He purred, thinking of his partner in ‘crime’ so to speak.

“Uh huh…” A bemused smile laced Marinette’s lips. His adoration of her alter ego was nothing new. “What’s it like working with Ladybug?”

"It's absolutely amazing being able to work with her, she so quick on her feet and ready to fight, and really graceful and smart. But honestly, I don't really work with her so much as help out a bit. She does all the real saving the day, I'm just the back up..." Chat's expression turned from excited and admiring at the beginning to humbling and a bit self-deprecating by the end. "But I'm sure you already know all that, from what I hear you and Ladybug are close friends after all…" He tried to shrug off his earlier comment like it was of little meaning.

Before Marinette could confront him about such an opinion, there was a series of low thunderous rumblings, and a host of screams that erupted from not too far from the bakery building. She and Chat Noir ran to the window, only to see a man wielding sculpting tools. There were marble statues about him, terrified caricatures of his victims turned into ‘art.’

“Speaking of…” Chat Noir’s face took on a bit of a serious expression, “Looks like we have to paws our interview for now purr-incess. I have to go assist My Lady…” He leaped out of the window before she could reply.

“Ugh, why can’t HawkMoth ever take a day off…” She waited till he was out of the line of sight to her bedroom window before commanding Tikki to transform her. “Let’s get this over with, and quick. Chat probably doesn’t have much time left in his miraculous form…” She went to her roof’s balcony before swinging off towards the fight.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Aaaaaaaaa, what the hell, how is this blowing up? Thank you guys so much, I really do appreciate it. More to come soon, hope you like it <3


	4. Part 4

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> School projects can be fun sometimes, especially if you're secretly a superhero.

"Chat Noir, watch out!" Ladybug called out, tackling him to the ground before he was turned to marble. He had been fending off The Sculptor as best he could till she arrived. "You need to be more careful! I highly doubt those nine lives of yours would come in handy if you’re turned into a statue..."

“Ehehe, right, sorry My Lady…" He quickly got up, reassuming a fighting stance. "I think the akuma is in his sculpting chisel and hammer, that's what we got to get away from him. But we need to get him away from the people he petrified first, before they’re shattered…”

"Alright! Distract him while I think of a plan." She said, readying her yo-yo, "And don’t get hurt."

"I won't get my good looks all banged up, don't worry~" He cooed, pouncing towards the enemy.

_"Oh jeez..."_ She thought, rolling her eyes. Tossing her yoyo into the sky, she called out for the lucky charm that would get them out of this situation. Materialized out of thin air fell down a pair of fluffy puffy overstuffed pillows. “What the…? This isn’t a sleepover, what am I supposed to do with these?!”

“Better think of something quick!” Chat Noir dipped and dodged the akumatized sculpter’s attacks, swift and agile like the ‘cat’ he was.

Frustrated, the villain roared as he struck the cemented ground with his tools. The surface crackled and creaked and from it sprung an amalgamation of rock and stone, bellowing as it charged at the heroic duo. “Behold! My Most Perfect Masterpiece! Go my child, and destroy them for their Miraculouses!”

“Hey Mount Everest! Over here! Come and get me!” He teased and taunted the monster creation in his usual fashion, luring him away from his partner.

“Be Careful!” Ladybug was still barely able to dodge the creature as it pushed towards Chat Noir. Clutching the pillows in her fists, she spotted the villain clutching his art tools in his own. An idea dawned on her, and the smirk on her face made him back up a step, defensive. “You and that pet of yours seem pretty cranky. Maybe you need a nap!”

With a sprint and a jump faster than he could react, she struck his head with one pillow and swatted his hands with the other, disorienting and disarming him in one fell swoop. Dropping one of the charms, she swiftly wrapped her yo-yo string tight around the sculptor, completely incapacitating him. “Looks like you’ll be on a hiatus, permanently!” Snatching up his hammer and chisel, Ladybug pulled their metal tips from their wooden hilts, releasing the akuma that possessed them. Then with a tug, the yo-yo came free from round the man and flew up into the air, capturing the deadly little insect inside.

“De-evilize!” With a swirl of her yo-yo, it burst open at the crest of the swing to release a flurry of shimmering halo and a crisp white-winged butterfly. “Bye bye little butterfly…”

As the purified little spirit fluttered off into the darkening night sky, a wave of the same glittering glow washed over the city. The stony monster crumbled to rubble, and the marbleized public reverted to living, breathing flesh. HawkMoth’s control over the sculpture faded away as he regained his own consciousness. Even the sculpting hammer and chisel were restored to their previous state. “Yeah! We did it Chat! Pound it!” She went in for their signature fist bump, but he wasn’t at her side. “Chat…?”

Looking about she saw a black mass digging and crawling out of the mass of debris left by the collapsed creature. “Chat!” Ladybug raced over, helping him out of the pile and out into the open. “Oh my god, are you ok? Chat, I’m so sorry, how hurt are you…?”

"Don't worry My Lady, I still got six, seven more lives left..." He tried to joke a bit, wiping a little but of blood from a split lip. Scrapes decorated his brow and cheeks, a bruise slowly starting to form along his jawline. No doubt there were most hidden underneath his attire. "But you got the akuma, so that's that then..."

“We need to get you healed up now, before your Miraculous runs out…” The glow of his ring indicated low energy. He’d change back to his normal self at any moment. “Let me take you to the hospital, please…”

"No, I'll be okay. Besides, I promised someone I'd finish an interview after the fight." He gave a small smirk and a slightly pained bow, "See you soon, My Lady." He was bounding off before she could restrain or rebuke him.

“God, he is such a handful sometimes…” She hurried back herself in order to return to her life as Marinette, hoping not to get caught. She had barely caught her breath, just making it to her room through the downstairs window when there was a rapping on the door up to the terrace Marinette swung it open only to have Chat Noir slip down to the floor below, using his staff to keep balance. "There you are! What happened? Did you have to save the world from evil again?" She teasingly grinned at him, trying hard to pretend she wasn’t just there. His split lip was still crusted in blood - not actively bleeding anymore - and a bruise on his jaw was already darker from that last time she noticed it. His appearance did nothing to ease her worried conscious.

"Yeah, sorry for the wait, had to charge back up after that battle..." He chuckled, rubbing the back of his neck. “You wanted to finish the interview, right?”

“Are, are you sure you’re okay to continue? You don’t look so good Chat…”

“A-furr-mative… Never felt better…” Despite doing his usual puns, sis response left her unconvinced.

“At least let me patch you up while we continue, then?” A compromise would be best, given his nature.

“…That, would actually be, really nice…” This was the Marinette he was used to seeing while being Adrien. As Chat Noir, it felt odd, almost undeserved. But he knew she was right, and surrendered. He sat himself down on the edge of her bed as she pulled over her desk chair. She left one moment and was back the other with a small medi-kit from the bathroom. It was not much, but it was something.

"So um, how do you usually help Ladybug fight the bad guys?" She proceeded from where they left off as she wet a cotton ball with disinfectant.

“Well my staff here comes in pretty handy a lot of the time...” Shrinking it down to his smallest size, like that of a baton, he waved it around slightly. “I also have my specia – ah!” he was interrupted by the sanitized swap being applied to some of the cuts along his face. He could help but let out a hiss in response.

“Sorry,” She winced for him, not realizing he would react so strongly. “That just means it’s working though… Anyway, you were saying?” Keeping the cotton ball pressed against the wound, she used her other hand to ready a band - aid.

“Ah, yeah. My special move Cataclysm is super cool, and comes in handy too.” He moved to hold the swab so she didn’t have to multitask. “Not as important as Ladybug’s yo-yo though, that’s the real weapon.”

“Don’t say that, it’s just as important.” The cotton ball now dotted with blood stains was replaced with a small bandage. “You, are just as important as Ladybug, no matter what you think of yourself…”

“I’m really not, but thanks,” Chat Noir gave perhaps the most halfhearted and pained chuckle Marinette had ever heard. “She’s called ‘The Miraculous Ladybug’ for a reason, you know? I’m just along for the ride.”

“You shouldn’t say that! You are just as crucial as her in keeping Paris safe and HawkMoth at bay!” Her firmness surprised him, but she set a sanitized cotton swab on his cut lip to keep him from responding with more self-deprecation. “Without you, Ladybug would never be able to handle everything that happens. Heck, she’s even told me that her Miraculous would have been taken a long time ago if it hadn’t been for you always by her side. She’s told me that she she thinks you’re an amazing partner and an even better person… even if she doesn’t know you personally…” Still under the rouse that she knew Ladybug as a friend, she did her best to still speak freely and truthfully.

Chat Noir had completely forgotten about the sting of the alcohol cleaning out his cut lip, dumbfounded by her unexpected pep talk. "She… She really said that?" Slowly his eyes lit up and he looked like a little kid just told they could eat dessert for breakfast, coming out of his momentary daze.

"Well, yeah! She thinks you have some really awesome fighting moves too. And your cat puns? Totally hilarious. She tells me your jokes all the time." Marinette breathed a small sigh of relief. _“Finally… I wish he didn’t think so poorly of himself in the first place…”_

"Yes! I knew she liked my jokes!" He exclaimed, nearly gulping down the used cotton ball he forgot was pressed to his mouth. The two of them chuckled, and Marinette wiped away any extra moisture from the cut so it could dry. “Thank you Marinette, for everything. Adrien is really lucky to have you as a friend.”

“Of course! And thank you for letting me interview you for my project,” She cleaned up the last few cuts on his cheeks before putting the medi-kit away.

"I’ll see you around Princess," He ran off right before his disguise timed out yet again, into the night.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> You guys are literally amazing for getting this unfinished fic to 400+ hits within its first week of existence, that's honestly insane and I love it. Thank you all so much <3


	5. Part 5

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> School projects can be fun sometimes, especially if you're secretly a superhero.

Slipping into his bedroom, he released his kwami back to its own state of being and became Adrien once again."I think that went pretty well, all in all. And did you hear what she said about Ladybug!? I knew she liked me! This is great!”

"Uh correction," Plagg interjected, "That would mean she likes you as Chat Noir, not you as Adrien..." 

"Yeah well... whatever..." he sighed, knowing the little cat was right, but still holding out some semblance of hope as he sat himself down at his desk. "I have to work on my own project now."

Meanwhile, Marinette couldn’t help but smile to herself, reeling a bit. "Oh my god! He’s such a pushover! Did you see the way he talked about me? He’s a lovesick kitty if I ever saw one. I'll have to admit, its kind of endearing... Too bad for him though," She trailed off and found herself swooning over the pictures of the young model on her walls, “My heart already has itself set on someone else.”

"I don't know Marinette, maybe Ladybug should give that lovesick kitty a chance." Tikki floated around, looking between her and the array of pictures. "At least you know Chat Noir has feelings for Ladybug. You don't even really know if Adrien has feelings for you as Ladybug or as Marinette..."

“Hey! That’s not, true…” her voice trailed off as the little kwami’s words sunk in. “Maybe you’re right… But you know I can’t help myself, Adrien is just so… ugh, he’s perfect. And I’ve liked him for so long, I-I can’t just flip my feelings like a switch just like that…”

"I know Marinette." The little kwami hugged her cheek. "I think it's just something you should think about. Now come on, you have a project to finish!" She giggled and smiled bright to cheer her up.

With a bit of a glum face, she agreed and went to her desk to continue with her own assignment. She worked all through the night to get it done, and by the time morning rolled about, she was curled up in her desk chair, face resting against her books as she fell asleep new moments after completing it. Tikki wanted to wake her but she definitely needed her rest. Eventually though, when it was getting too close to call she began to shake her awake as best she could. “You can’t be late for school again! You already skipped your detention yesterday to get interviewed by Adrien!”

With a drowsy groan she rose, rubbing the sleep from her eyes. “Okay, okay, let’s get going.” It was a sluggish start, but soon she was running out the door towards school. Though she came well on time today, Ms. Bustier reprimanded her for skipping out on her detention yesterday. Marinette quietly accepted the penalty of detention for the rest of the week. There was nothing to be done about it anyway. She went to sit at her desk with her project, head down against the cool wood. Her kwami’s words from the night before about Chat Noir and Adrien still sounded in her head like a constantly rung bell. She was still in that state by the time the projects were almost finished being presented.

Alya poked her multiple time to get her attention and whispered, "Hey, Marinette? Marinette, what’s wrong with you, girl? Get up! It’s almost your turn to go!”

She sprang up and looked about nervously, "Huh!? What!?"

“You come to class on time and yet you’re all out of sorts? What’s the matter?”

“O-Oh, nothing wrong, just didn’t sleep all that well, you know?” 

Her lie fell on deaf ears. "I’m not stupid Marinette. I know when something’s up, that’s why I’m your best friend."

"Alya, Marinette, I certainly hope you're paying attention." Their teacher glanced sideways at them, "Keep gong Mylene, I'm sorry for the interruption." 

"Oh, that's ok," Mylene smiled and continued with her presentation. 

Adrien and Nino looked behind them when the two girls got called out, chuckling slightly. "Hey Marinette," Adrien whispered, "Thanks again for setting up the interview, it was pretty cool of you to do that..."

"Oh! N-No problem! I mean- anything for you, Adrien!" She stuttered out, flustered as usual. Defeated, she sighed and slumped in her seat. 

Adrian just chuckled and smiled. "Thanks again..." he turned back around in his seat before the teacher caught them talking again.

"Marinette Dupain-Cheng, since you feel the need to talk so much today, why don’t you present next?" Ms. Bustier said, impatiently tapping her foot.

“Yes Ma’am, sorry…” 

When Mylene had concluded her presentation, the class clapped as she took a small bow and returned to her seat. Filled with dread, Marinette rose and approached the front of the room, gripping at the edges of her project’s poster.

Go get 'em girl!" Alya cheered her on, Nino and Adrien doing the same as they all clapped to encourage her.

Though she tried to prop the poster board up somehow, if kept slipping and falling out of place, eliciting a few snickers from Chloe. In a huff she just decided to hold it open for viewing, displaying expertly down sketches of Chat Noir in various fighting stances. Even his Cataclysm was depicted in awesome detail. Taking a deep breath to gather her thoughts, she began.

“Chat Noir may just be the luckiest black cat in all of Paris…” A few chuckles arose from the joke. Adrien was already smiling, his heart melting slightly. “From my special interview with him, he very much lives up to his image. Sleek and witty, always prepared for a fight, side by side with his partner Ladybug. But he’s also just a normal kid like you and I. Even with all his fame and praise, he has fears and self-doubt about his influence and whether he actually makes a difference in peoples lives. And he might just be Ladybug’s biggest fan of all time because no matter how many times he’s saved her life like when fighting Time Breaker or revived her confidence when against their first opponent Stone Heart – Even when he called her out on her jealousy towards Volpina – he never feels like he’s good enough to have earned his role as a hero of Paris… 

“But Ladybug wouldn’t be anything without Chat Noir. If he had never saved her, never encouraged her, never critiqued her, I’m very confident that she would not be where she is today, or even here at all. His wish was to make a difference in the world through actual good deeds, not anything superficial or shallow. Any regular guy would be using his newly discovered power given to him would have just gone running around showing off and only pretend to be the hero. That’s where Chat Noir rises from regular to extraordinary. Thank you.”

Such a candid and heartfelt presentation left the class in a bit of awe, especially when it came from someone so normally tepid and not particularly articulate. Applause started sparse but erupted soon enough from most everyone. “Does anyone have questions for Marinette…?” The teacher finally asked once the noise had quieted down a bit.

Chloe promptly raised her hand, but didn't wait to be called on to speak, "How on earth did you get an interview with Chat Noir? Like he doesn't have anything better to do than to talk to plain school girls?" A sneer crossed her lips.

"I’m actually good friends with Ladybug and she asked him to meet with me." Marinette responded calmly, the tone of her voice shutting the blonde down immediately. Though a lie, she meant it in good faith, not wanting to expose Adrien of knowing Chat Noir personally. He had enough in life to deal with. "Next?"

“What was it like to meet him in person!” Nino popped up, ecstatic.

“Oh, he was a total dork, per usual..." She giggled. "But it was really amazing to be so close to one of Paris' superheroes. I’ve ran into him a few times before though so to me it wasn’t anything new. But he really is a great guy. He’s intelligent, and quick witted and his heart is always in the right place."

"Do you think you could get him to come into class? Because that would be totally rad!"

Agreement chittered around the room among the students, but they were quieted quickly. Ms. Bustier’s harsh demeanor lessened as she collected the visual item of Marinette’s project, “Thank you Marinette, that was a wonderful presentation. Certainly an interesting approach for a living idol…”

“Thank you, Ms. Bustier…” Humbled, she went to her seat where her friends were bursting to share their reactions.

“You should get him to come to class though, if you can…” Nino teased her, nudging her with his elbow, “That would be dope.”

“You killed it, Marinette, that was amazing!” Alya’s arms wrapped tightly about her with a big grin to match.

“Yeah Marinette! That was really good! I’m, glad you and Chat Noir were able to chat some…” Adrien tried his best to hid it but he was absolutely flattered by the detail in her poster about his alter ego Chat Noir. And her oral presentation was spot on. But a few things made him have small doubts. Things that he didn't mention in his interview. All the intimate moments between him and Ladybug during fights and whatnot. No one ever really knew those. But even as it nagged him, he shrugged off as something that she got from Alya's blog or that Ladybug actually mentioned to her. They were friends after all, weren’t they?

“You guys really think so?” She beamed as she was showered with compliments.

“So class, it only seems right to have Adrien Agreste go next, since he researched the other half of Paris' super duo..." The teacher waved him up. 

Shaking his head a bit in order to bring himself back to reality, he quickly whipped out his very professional looking poster – rivaling Marinette’s in detail and precision – and began. “There’s not much I can say about the Miraculous Ladybug that hasn’t already been said by the news or by all of her fans. I mean, Miraculous is in her title after all, and she lives up to all the hype…” Marinette’s gaze softened as she watched him unknowingly speak of her, a warm smile on her lips. “Thanks to our very own Marinette I was able to interview her personally myself, I can vouch that all of talk about her is true. She’s as confident as she is brave, and as kind as she is humble. And the fact that she can balance fighting HawkMoth’s minions and patrol Paris while still going to school and being a regular citizen is mind blowing.”

“She still has her faults though, from time to time. Not even superhero’s can be perfect. Sometimes Ladybug can be too stubborn for her own good, like when she was almost eaten by a T-Rex, or take on more responsibility than she can handle like the one time she almost sacrificed herself to The Pharaoh to save us. But she’s always ready to admit her wrongs when they’re pointed out, and never really tries to make excuses for herself. That’s not a characteristic that’s common in people. So despite her follies, her good natured spirit and her ability to bring out the best in people around her make her the best role model living in Paris, and all of France today. Thank you.”

“Any questions about Adrien’s presentation?”

Alya hand shot straight up. “What did you think about meeting Ladybug in person?” 

"Well, Marinette actually helped get the interview set up, and it was incredible. She was really nice and considerate, and even though she seems to have a really busy life even outside of being a superhero, she does it all with a smile. She's just so amazing, honestly..." He gave a fond smile to no one in particular as he spoke.

Marinette sunk down into her seat, fallingto the bottom of the ocean of love. Her face was nothing short of euphoric. She swooned and thought, "Adrien! Wow… Adrien really likes me!"

Quick and concise, and very well spoken to boot, Adrien earned his applause, giving a grateful little bow. “Very good, Adrien Agreste. If no one else has any questions, I think that’s enough for today. We’ll have the rest of the projects presented tomorrow. Those of you that still have yet to go please use this extra time wisely. Class dismissed…”

Most of the students left quickly and with a wide smile. Adrien met back with friends at their desks first though, “Do you guys think I did a good job?”

“Dude, you were totally rad! I still can’t believe you and Marinette met Ladybug and Chat Noir in person!” Nino tried their specialized handshake again. Adrien actually got a good bit of it this go around, but still not quite. 

“Yeah, didn’t I tell you Marinette could hook you up with a good interview?” Alya nudged her friend to pop her back into reality. 

“H-Huh? Uh, yeah! N-no, really! You're perfect!" Marinette cheered, still slightly stunned by the shower of compliments. "Oh! I mean, your presentation was perfect! Not that you're not perfect, because you are great! But I mean that in a friendly way! Uh... I’m going to shut up now…" She sighed, covering her face in embarrassment at her drabble.

"Thanks Marinette. And thanks again for setting up the interview, I couldn't have done it without you. I guess Chat Noir was able to help you too with his interview, I'm glad I talked him into it…" He gave a smile, knowing all the while inside the truth.

Nino and Alya were about to question how Adrien seemed to know that Marinette had gotten an interview with Chat Noir before her presentation, but Ms. Bustier disrupted them. “Unless you’d like to join Ms. Dupain-Cheng for her detention, you’d best be getting along your way…”

Sharing apologetic smiles, the three of her friends left the little baker girl to her fate. With a defeated expression, Marinette sat back down at her desk, head resting on crossed arms. Ms. Bustier sat at her desk grading the presented projects. After a little while passed, she eyed her student. “Marinette…”

“Um, yes Ms. Bustier…?” Her head lifted, gulping nervously.

“You’ve done a tremendous job on this project. Your visual and oral components were immaculate. I’ll take back my punishment, and have you complete detention only for today. But I expect this type of work in the future, and for you to come to class on time more often…” She gave a coy and understanding smile.

Marinette’s face lit up at the news. “I’ll do my best, I promise!” The rest of her confinement was spent daydreaming of Adrien and her soon to be had freedom. And there was splashes of Chat Noir in her mind as well. After that interview, she thought that despite his incessant need for cat pun, he wasn’t all that bad after all.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Aaaaaaaa, I'm sorry this chapter is coming in super late and way longer compared to the others, but I wanted to make sure I got all the wording just right for the final scene. The response I've gotten to this fic has been absolutely tremendous and totally out of the blue and I'm so grateful that people actually like what I'm putting out <3


	6. Epilogue

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> School projects can be fun sometimes, especially if you're secretly a superhero.

"You're free to go now Marinette. Come in on time tomorrow, please..." Ms. Bustier looked up from her grading to the daydreaming student across from her. "Marinette?"

"Hm?" She only half heard what her teacher said, her mind still wandering about thoughts of Adrien and Chat Noir. "Oh, right, sorry! I'll go now."

"Have a good day Marinette," she shook her head with a light chuckle.

As she gathered her things and left for home, a sudden thought crossed her mind. She stood stock still outside the classroom, eyes growing wider and her face growing red. "Some of the things in Adrien's presentation... How did he...?"

"Are you ok, Marinette?" Tikki peeked out from the little coin purse.

"Sure that stuff might be in the news, but... His tone was so personal... What if, he knows Chat Noir like I know Ladybug, and since I'm Ladybug, then that would mean..." Her hands flew up and clasped in front of her mouth, speaking in almost an inaudible whisper, "Adrien and Chat Noir are..."

Frozen in place, her mind went blank at the notion. Finally, she swiftly shook her head and swung her hands back to her sides. "No way they can be the same person. I must be going crazy..." She finally went on her way to leave the school building. "I don't have time to think like that anyways, I have to get home."

The spotted little kwami in her bag gave out a little sigh as she nestled back in, out of sight from prying eyes. "You were so close Marinette, you almost had it..."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Because I'm a slut for epilogues, and I realized I forgot to add something to the last chapter before Inwent to bed. Again, thank you all for all of your support <3

**Author's Note:**

> Based off of an unfinished rp I did a while ago with a close friend, some phrasing is taken directly from it but it's mostly rewritten in my own style. Just some fluffly goodness, with a dash of angst, for your view pleasure. I don't know how many chapters it will be, definitely no more than 10 though. We'll see.


End file.
